REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Indonesian government is planning to immediately evacuate its citizens in Yemen due to unstable political situation in that country.
"The government has prepared a plan to evacuate Indonesian citizens in Yemen. According to reports from the Indonesian embassy in Sana'a, although normal life there is relatively normal, the place is politically quite vulnerable," the coordinator of the task force for the evacuation of citizens in Yemen, Gatot Abdullah Mansyur, said here on Wednesday.
According to Gatot, there are some 4,000 Indonesian citizens in Yemen and some 100 of them live in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, which has been affected the most by the unstable political situation in the country.
He noted that the Indonesian embassy in Sana'a has appealed to its citizens in that country to remain alert. It has also advised them to not get involved in any political activity in that country and stay away from political rallies and events.
Foreign Minister Retno L Marsudi has instructed the embassy in Sana'a to inform the Indonesian citizens in Yemen about the evacuation plan, he revealed.
"This means the government has decided to evacuate Indonesian citizens if the situation in Yemen worsens. So, citizens who no longer feel secure and comfortable should immediately register themselves at the embassy for evacuation purposes," he added.
"Registrations started yesterday. The government will evacuate them no matter how many they are. However, their evacuation will be done in stages," he pointed out.
Gatot remarked that the main challenge in carrying out the evacuation plan lies in informing citizens who have no access to the Indonesian embassy and are difficult to reach.
He stated that two preliminary steps have been prepared: the first is to identify Indonesian citizens and accommodate them in safe houses and the second is to determine safe routes for their transportation.
"The most ideal transportation will be via flights from Sana'a to Jakarta," he revealed.
He added that the government has yet to decide the date to start the evacuations.
He stressed that those who are not willing to be evacuated will be asked to make a statement saying the decision to stay put was made upon their own will.
Political and security situation in Yemen has worsened since September 2014. Twelve embassies in Yemen have been closed since the Shiite Houthi rebels took over the government.
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